WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2006 Review

Did You See That, J.R.?

First, the graphics. Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006 is quite possibly the best looking WWE game yet, even if only by the slightest of margins. The character models are fantastic. They look very close to their real-life counterparts, even down to the size difference between, say, Rey Mysterio and Kane. They move fluidly, and the environments are quite well done too. Again, it probably won't knock your socks off, but if you look closely or consider yourself a graphical guru, you certainly will notice the difference. Sound quality varies. The musical offerings and sound effects are fairly good, but the play-by-play is often lagging behind the action or out-and-out nonsensical, and most of the superstar voice-overs (that is, of those who actually bothered to record material for the game) are on the bland side.

Turning from Face to Heel

Sadly, the game does have its flaws. Several of them, in fact. The one that will probably jump right out to anyone who plays this game and is a fan of the WWE is the horrendous roster available. Seriously, Yukes must have been working off of an old, taped 2003 Pay Per View or something when they selected the characters for Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006. Charlie Haas, Mark Jindrak and Spike Dudley had been released from their WWE contracts months before the game's release, while highly touted tag-team MNM, former Tough Enough trainer Bob "Hardcore" Holly, and Road Warrior Animal -- a legend in past Smackdown games who had recently returned to active competition -- were all noticeably absent. There's no sugar-coating it. Yukes really dropped the ball here and did an abysmal job of keeping up to date with the WWE product.

Momentum Shift

The wrestling engine itself has been reworked a bit in Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006 as well. The latest title pretty much jettisons the arcade-style of play found in previous versions of the series, and now focuses more on reversals, submissions and mat wrestling, a la the N64 games. Stamina now plays a big part in the action, making for slower-paced, more deliberate matches. Considering how beloved those games were among fans and how legendary they are considered these days, it's hard to knock Yukes for going in this direction. But longtime Smackdown fans may find themselves turned off by the gameplay. Fortunately, they will be pleased with the match types available, which include such staples as hardcore, first blood and submission matches, as well as the Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber, and more.

Setting Up For The Finisher

More than anything else, however, fans will find themselves interested in Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006 for two reasons -- the timeless season mode and the brand new GM mode. Sadly, while both offer decent fun, neither reaches its full potential. Season mode offers more scenarios this year than in the first Smackdown vs. Raw title, but they still are fairly poorly written and get quite repetitive. Plus, Create-A-Wrestler feels a lot more limited in selection this time around.

GM mode, on the other hand, is an interesting new feature that plays out much like Baseball Mogul or a similar sports-management game. It is a novel concept, and it is nice seeing Yukes trying to add something new to the franchise, but as is, it is rather shallow. Still, the potential is there, and in a few years, perhaps the developers can add some much needed strategic depth and help this feature reach its full potential.

1, 2, 3 -- This One's Over, Folks!

In the end, Smackdown! vs. Raw 2006 winds up being a mediocre game. That's a shame, because it could've been so much more. Instead of reinventing the core gameplay of an already successful and beloved franchise, it would've been nice if Yukes could have tweaked the Season, GM and Create-A-Wrestler features and given fans the ultimate version of the traditional Smackdown game. Instead, they decided to try and fix what wasn't broken, and in the end I feel that they released an inferior product. Perhaps it's time to let this franchise be until a good quality next-gen version can be made, because it sure seems like the Smackdown! games have seen better days on the PS2.